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Technicolor Creative Services USA is facing a proposed class action lawsuit in California federal court, alleging that the company illegally terminated over 200 employees without the legally required advance notice.

According to the 15-page complaint, plaintiff Jane Doe, a former employee at Technicolor’s Culver City facility, claims the company violated both federal and California Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Acts when it abruptly fired 217 employees on February 24 without the required 60-day warning.

Doe asserts the layoffs were the direct result of a planned facility closure or mass layoff, a move she says Technicolor knew was inevitable but failed to disclose.

Allegations of WARN Act Violations Stack Up

Under both the federal WARN Act and California’s state equivalent, companies must notify affected employees, as well as government agencies, before conducting large-scale layoffs.

According to Doe, Technicolor failed to notify the California Employment Development Department or any local government officials before executing the mass termination.

"Upon information and belief, nor did defendant give any prior written notice," Doe stated in the lawsuit. "Rather, defendant waited until after the layoffs to begin to attempt to do so."

A Growing Trend of WARN Act Lawsuits

The Technicolor WARN Act suit is the latest in a wave of class actions accusing companies of disregarding layoff notification laws.

• Earlier this month, a WARN Act case was filed in New York against DocGo Inc., which allegedly terminated more than 200 workers without notice.

• In February, digital media startup The Messenger settled a lawsuit over hundreds of employees allegedly fired without warning.

• In November, CVS Health Corp. and PepsiCo Beverage North America faced WARN Act lawsuits in California and Illinois, with CVS accused of laying off 250 nurse practitioners and PepsiCo shutting down a Chicago warehouse overnight, leaving 80 workers jobless.

Class Action Seeks Compensation for Fired Workers

Doe’s lawsuit against Technicolor seeks class certification to represent all employees affected by the February layoffs, including:

• Back pay for lost wages and benefits

• Reimbursement for medical expenses

• Attorney fees and litigation costs

• Civil penalties against Technicolor

The lawsuit argues that Technicolor’s Culver City closure meets the WARN Act definition of a plant shutdown, which requires at least 50 workers to be terminated from a single site. Alternatively, Doe contends the event qualifies as a mass layoff, as it impacted over a third of the company’s workforce.

What’s Next for Technicolor?

As the entertainment industry faces increasing economic turbulence, the case against Technicolor Creative Services USA could serve as a critical test for how studios and visual effects firms handle workforce reductions.

Representatives for Jane Doe and Technicolor have not yet commented on the lawsuit.

Doe is represented by CohenMalad LLP, Strauss Borrelli PLLC, and Stranch Jennings & Garvey PLLC.

Counsel information for Technicolor remains unavailable.